Early Bookings to Greece Set Positive Pace for 2023

Corfu, Greece.

Early bookings for package travel to Greece as well as pre-bookings from the UK, the Balkans and France are setting a positive pace, said  Hellenic Hoteliers Federation (POX) President Grigoris Tasios.

In an interview this week to ANA-MPA (Athens News Agency), Tasios said US travelers are waiting for the launch of direct flights to Greece in March while early bookings from Germany and Poland were slower.

Tasios said the next round of early bookings which ends on March 31 will give clear indication of what to expect in the summer ahead. He went on to add that Greek tourism professionals are expecting arrival figures to be similar to last year’s levels and higher tourism revenues.

Hellenic Hoteliers Federation (POX) President Grigoris Tasios. Photo source: @GrigorisTasios.

According to POX president, package deal rates offered by Greek hotels were 10 percent higher. At the same time, he said the increase was barely enough to address the inflationary pressures and rising costs adding that hoteliers were now looking into alternative sources of energy to remain above water.

Speaking to ANA-MPA, Institute for Tourism Research and Forecasts (ITEP) President Konstantina Svinou echoed Tasios, noting that 2023 was going to be a better year than 2022 particularly for destinations that outdid pre-Covid 2019 levels last year. Svinou, also president of the Kos Hoteliers Association, underlined however that remote and mountain regions in Greece do not enjoy an equal share of the market and of development as demonstrated by 2022 data.